Nature's Song
by VixyGreen
Summary: Cecilia is a blind girl with the ability to speak with nature. Her brother is a knight, and when their mother dies she must join him in Camelot, where she meets none other than a legendary warlock. Merlin/OC
1. Prologue

Prologue

"Cecilia!" The shrill voice of a woman called. Her disembodied voice carried over the breeze that turned the tall summer grass into a sea of green. "Cecilia!" She bellowed over the lush field where two young adults were playing. Both similar in features, the boy, and probable elder of the two, was leading the girl around in circles as they danced to music only they could hear. The boy, who was actually a young man, had a large build that had become very muscular as he grew older; the girl however, was thin and frail. The woman sighed as she marched closer to the two children. The boy saw the woman noticed the woman first and a wide grin plastered on his face. "Mother." He cried as he let go of the girls hands, his deep voice a noticeable contrast to that of the woman. The girl, with long dark hair, stopped dancing, in fact she stopped moving. The smile still on her face as she glanced around her, trying to see the woman the boy could see. "Mother, Cecilia and I were just dancing. She was singing Mother. Cecilia called it the 'Woods Waltz'; she claims the trees taught her the song. Mother you have to hear it." The woman, obviously the children's mother, hushed the boy before he could say much more.

"Percival, you must not say things like that in the public eye. Someone, who does not know Cecilia, might think that she is a Druid and take her to face the King." She whispered. Even at a young age both children had been aware of the hatred toward those with magic. Percival never saw it as truly fair, mainly because he knew his younger sister was born with her abilities and had never given reason to anyone to think that she was dangerous, in fact Cecilia was the kindest, gentlest person that Percival knew, he could compare her touches to butterfly kisses, even angry Cecilia couldn't harm a fly. Percival looked at his beloved little sister and sighed, he was eighteen only a few days prior and would soon be heading towards Camelot to work, leaving his younger magical sister defenceless.

Only about a week later Percival was away. He had said his goodbyes to his friends and family. He left with his few possessions on his back and began to long ride to Camelot to earn his fortune. Everyone believed that he was doing it for himself, as a man, but the truth was that Percival was going to Camelot so that he could earn enough to give his little sister, Cecilia, a decent life where she wouldn't have to ever worry about anything. Only Cecilia and their mother knew the truth about why Percival was leaving. Their mother, now being the main and only source of income, worked on the fields to keep food on the table. Cecilia worked with those too old to work by keeping them company, she looked after them and they looked after her. They often asked Cecilia to sing for them, as she was known to have a voice that only song-birds could compare to.

It had been little over a year before Cecilia heard the winds whisper good news to her. A smile beamed across her pale face as she sang with the winds, thanking them for bringing her such precious information. That evening Cecilia waited for her mother in the main area of their home, normally her mother would have to fetch Cecilia from the fields or from the town hall as she had little concept of time. Cecilia was on the edge of her seat when the door opened. She burst into telling her mother the news. "Mother! You would not believe what the winds have told me this day. Such good news." There was a pregnant pause while Cecilia waited for her mother to reply. "Mother? Is this a jest? Are you pretending you are not there so that I must come find you?" There was still no response, beginning to get desperate Cecilia cried out. "Mama! What is the matter?" Cecilia could feel her eyes begin to sting with tears. A deep voice, belonging to a man who lived near Cecilia, answered.

"I am sorry Cecilia. Raylene is not coming home." His tone tender and soft, apologetic, exactly what Cecilia didn't want to hear?

"Ho...How did it happen?" Cecilia asked, her voice shaking and cracking with grief.

"It was so sudden. We think her heart just gave out. She was not yet old Cecilia, but she had you much later than most. She probably just, stopped." The man paused for a moment; Cecilia could hear him rub his stubbled cheek as he thought about how to continue. There was no easy way to give such horrible and tragic news, especially to a young woman who depended solely on her mother's care. "There was no pain. She went to pick up something in the field and didn't get up. I am sorry for your loss." There was the creaking of the door as the man left Cecilia alone, to wallow in her grief. Unable to hold back any longer Cecilia broke down in tears, her screams and sobs could be heard through-out the village, each person feeling Cecilia's sorrow. Late into the night Cecilia cried, if had been anyone else, for any other reason they would have claimed that person as soft, but Cecilia had every right to cry for her mother. She had every right to make others feel the burden of her sorrow as she sunk into a depression. The howls of distant wolves only seemed to mirror Cecilia in her cries; owls hovered and landed on the roof of her home, as if to offer her comfort the best they could. Outside the door were frogs, cats and a collection of foxes, trying to give warmth and care to the broken girl.

The morning came around too slowly for Cecilia; she wanted nothing more but to stay in her mental darkness as the world around her remained closed off to her eyes. Her mother, Cecilia's' guiding light was gone and Cecilia didn't know where to turn. She knew she had to bury her mother that day, the village would not wait for Percival, who at least a week's ride away, to return. Every member of the small village was gathered on the outskirts of a field, where a square hole had been dug under a large oak tree. It had been Cecilia who chose the spot as she had remembered Percival telling her that it was there where their mother used to sit. The service was simple and quick, everyone was moved on from the tree once Cecilia was directed on where to throw the first of the dirt. Once back home some of the men and women who worked with Raylene came to talk with Cecilia about her last wishes. "Cecilia." A woman began, her voice soft and calm, just like a grandmothers. "We understand that it is hard for you. But there are some things that we must talk to you about." Cecilia didn't trust her voice and just nodded, a singular tear escaping her eye. "Your mother, Raylene, had a last wish." The woman paused to look at Cecilia; there was no response so she continued. "She wanted you to go to your brother in case of her death. She said that she could only sleep in peace knowing you were taken care of." The woman drifted slightly and a man, the same man who gave Cecilia the original bad news took her place.

"We have organized for an escort to take you to Camelot tomorrow. You should be there in seven days, if the weather holds, once there the escort will try to find Percival for you."

"That won't be necessary." Cecilia finally said, her timid voice wavering as she whispered. "I know exactly where Percival is." Her cloudy eyes looking directly at the guests in her home, Cecilia smiled.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The sun had an almost innocent glow to it as it lifted itself over the canopy of the forest. Cecilia was sitting on a white thoroughbred horse named Theia. Cecilia thought it ironic as her name was that of a blind saint and Theia was a goddess of sight. She sat impatiently, waiting for her escort to join her so that she may be a moment closer to joining her brother in Camelot. Cecilia's escort was a young man who worked as a blacksmith in the village, he had bronzed skin and iron-like muscles, not that Cecilia had ever noticed. She sat upon her mare while her escort leapt onto his dark shire. In the past everyone had said that Cecilia would marry the young man she rode with, Theodoric, but when pushed for an answer Cecilia would reply saying that she had no romantic feelings for any man in the village, but it didn't stop Theodoric from trying to catch the attention of the dark-haired, cloudy-eyed maiden.

When the sun was just over half visible over the tree tops Cecilia and Theodoric left for Camelot, it would be a long journey and time could not be wasted. The two horses were packed full with travelling goods and a wagon was attached to a third horse that contained everything Cecilia and her mother had owned, as well as anything Percival had left behind before he left for Camelot. The wagon creaked as it was led away from the village, Theodoric kept a close eye on both Cecilia and the wagon, as the only seeing person around he needed to be extra aware of everything. Every tree, rock and leaf that the couple passed was observed by Theodoric, he tried to create a mind map for his return journey as well, for when he would return he would be alone. Cecilia looked mindlessly around herself, she saw everything without truly seeing anything, the gentle breezes described every branch, every twig, and the sound of hooves and the wheels of the wagon painted a picture of the ground beneath for Cecilia, it was beautiful for her, to see a world in her mind. A world she could create.

Shortly they were deep in the forest that surrounded the village, the foliage was dense and there was little light to be spared, Theodoric could tell it was getting dark as the shadows of the trees seemed to be growing further than they had been earlier in the day, it would soon be time to set up a camp. Theodoric didn't know much of the forest, with little need to ever leave the protection of the village; he was unsure where to place the camp, Cecilia could almost sense how nervous Theodoric was about the resting place for the night, she, secretly, sent a little prayer that something could guide the travellers to a decent resting place. There was then a sudden breeze, it almost seemed unnatural. "There is a cave, only a few lengths left of here. It will protect us from the storm that is brewing in the east, as we are heading west it will give us little worries, but it is still there." Cecilia pointed through a cluster of trees to some unseen destination. Theodoric glanced at Cecilia for a moment before he headed in the direction she had pointed them, and, to his surprise, was a cave, it looked big enough for the two of them and the wagon. He quickly set about preparing a camp while Cecilia struggled to get of Theia, as she didn't know where the ground was. She finally managed to fall off the patient mare and landed on the hard ground with an ungraceful 'thud'. It was only then did Theodoric return his attention to Cecilia, only to realise he had left her alone for too long and was now suffering for his ignorance, Cecilia must have picked up on his sudden panic though as she raised one delicate hand and told Theodoric to continue his business. She calmly stood up, brushed herself down, and smiled at Theodoric, had he been a less rational man, or one with less honour, he would have jumped her there and then, but as Cecilia didn't know any better Theodoric contained himself. If he couldn't have her heart he wouldn't have her at all.

As the sun rose for the second day of the journey Theodoric noticed something strange about Cecilia he had never seen before, she slept with her eyes open, but they weren't just open, they were clear. Like normal eyes. Theodoric could see the colour of them for the first time in his life, lilac, they were lilac. Strange. Theodoric pondered. Most strange in deed. For it was not normal to have lilac eyes, but then again it was not normal to be blind, though it could not be that the blame be passed to either parent or child in such instance as it just is. However the colour of one's eyes is meant to indicate something about the soul, so when Cecilia was born with pure white eyes, well, let it be known the village celebrated in the birth of an angel, one so pure that they were not allowed to see the horrors of the man-made world. In conclusion, the fact that Theodoric could see that, not only did Cecilia have an actual eye colour, but a rare and infamous colour was shocking. He thought it best to keep this secret to him, lest someone find out themselves.

Theodoric thought nothing more of it when Cecilia began to wake up, her eyes clouding over once more. She stretched, like a pleasured cat, before turning her face to where sunlight, along with the suns warmth, was coming from. Theodoric watched at the gentle glow of the sun engulfed Cecilia, making her seem angelic, a divine creature that needed protected. Then, as if called to her, a doe stepped forward through the trees towards the cave entrance, towards Cecilia, its thin legs moving gracefully across the small patch of dirt before the cave and stood in front of Cecilia. Cecilia must have, somehow, known it was there, as she smiled up at the regal creature and greeted it. The doe, in return, bowed its head. Theodoric wished he could have painted the scene he was seeing, for there was no possible way for him to explain to others the scene in front of him. It was as if Nature herself was greeting Cecilia as a companion, an old friend.

The peacefulness, the stillness, of the moment was broken by an arrow flying past Cecilia and the doe, in an instant the graceful creature was gone, leaving Cecilia to stare blankly at an arrow. Theodoric moved to Cecilia's' side in a moment, searching the surrounding woods for the archer. For a pregnant pause there was no sound, no movement, no life to be seen, but then a man, well, several men walked out from the trees, all clad in chainmail and basic armour. Theodoric's' eyes widened when he saw one man in particular, he had short dark hair, a strong jaw, broad shoulders, and piercing blue eyes. It was Percival. He stood head and shoulders taller than the rest of the men, his own eyes further opened in horror when he saw where the arrow had landed and who was sitting not a pace away from it. He broke from the formation of men to join his sister, causing a ruckus between the rest of the men, an older man, probably only mid-twenties, looked at the sight, his hazel eyes held a knowing in them that had Theodoric on unease.

As Percival checked over Cecilia he didn't say a word, the fact that there was no noise and that Cecilia couldn't see who it was that was touching her frightened her beyond belief, she could not tell who it was, and so in response to the stranger, Cecilia let out a blood-curdling scream that would have woken the dead. It was only then did Percival realise his mistake of not announcing himself to Cecilia, he remembered when they were children and he would do that, the amount of times he got slapped in the face by his younger sister was humiliating. "Cecilia." He whispered to her, to calm her, to soothe her. "It is I. It is your brother. Percival. Do not tell me that I have been away for so long that you have forgotten me." He tone light and floating, but Percival meant it seriously, he knew that Cecilia would not leave the village unless something had happened, and it was more than possible if it was bad enough to force Cecilia to leave that she might have forgotten her brother.

"Brother?" Cecilia replied, a voice nothing but a whisper as she tried to process what had happened. A look of realisation crossed her face as she leapt towards Percival, arms open and tears in her eyes. "Brother!" She called, the other men seemed to have calmed down with the title Percival was given by the girl. "Oh my dear dear Brother. How good it is to hear your voice once more. I was on my way to meet you. You are early. You should not have been here for another day." The news shocked everyone, but Percival. "I am correct in thinking that it was a last moment change that has brought you to me sooner?" Cecilia's' cloudy eyes gazed up at Percival, at first he nodded, but soon remembered to verbally reply.

"Yes sister. It is because of his Majesty we are here today and not tomorrow. How did you become aware of our travelling though Cecilia? The King told no one but his most loyal knights when we were leaving, or even where we were going." Now everyone was looking at Cecilia, their gazes piercing through her, but Cecilia didn't mind, or notice, she just continued to face Percival with a delicate smile placed upon her lips. Her cloudy eyes telling no secrets to her beloved brother. "Was it due to the gift of your birth?" Percival pressed on, they never referred to Cecilia's gift without relating it to her birth, just to prove that Cecilia had no choice in the matter and was as innocent as they come.

"It was indeed the gift given to me in exchange for my eyes. But, oh, how much I can see. Never afore has the land around us been viewed in such a way. The winds whisper to me, the trees join in the song, the rivers and streams are my instruments, and the rock and earth beneath me are dancing. Brother, oh, brother. If you could see what I can. Know what I know. Then Nature's Song would live on in all hearts." Cecilia sighed, her eyes drooped closed as the breeze picked up once more and lifted the hair straight off Cecilia's back. Her dark hair swirled behind her, a different woman would have complained about the mess it was making, but Cecilia actually tilted her head back to allow the wind better access, her lips opened slightly to let out a quiet gasp, none of the men looking upon Cecilia knew what to make of the scene, it was as if Cecilia and the wind were lovers, joining in an embrace, they all wanted to look away but were compelled to watch as the act played out. When the wind stopped Cecilia opened her eyes again and her lips shut once more. "Oh and how nature does so dance brother. It is out mother, our sister, our spouse. I would rather be blind and deaf to the goings on of the world than be away from her tender caress." Cecilia further explained. "It is through such breezes and wordless songs that I knew of your coming brother. A more foolish soul would ignore what the world has to say. But not I. No, dear brother, I have been given the gift to see and listen without eyes of colour and ears." Cecilia giggled a light-hearted musical sound that even the trees responded to with childish waves. The other men looked at the trees with weary eyes, as if expecting a dangerous, or even magical, creature to appear suddenly.

One of the mid-aged men in the group looked at the siblings with curious, emerald green eyes, he had not heard of Percival having a sister before and it was clear that the girl had a strong connection with nature, making more than possible that she had used druid magic to bewitch him into believing that she was his sister. The man continued to have these thoughts until two words were spoken. Spoken so softly that if not for the deadly silence of the forest the man would not have heard them.

"Mother is dead."

No one, not even the winds themselves, made a sound. The entire forest came to a halt as Cecilia spoke the two words that caused her more pain than any other she knew.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Percival sat in silence as the news presented to him finally came into recognition. He, momentarily, glanced at his King and fellow Knights, taking in their sympathetic looks and turned back to his, unseeing, sister. Her glazed eyes looked knowingly into his, a petite hand clasped his and gentle smile graced her pale pink lips. Grief struck the larger man as silent tears fell from sapphire eyes; a single delicate arm wrapped itself around the shoulders of the weeping man, as Cecilia held her brother close to her, her steady breathing warming his face. The other men, the King and his most loyal followers, stood, stock still, at the edge of the clearing.

A thousand moments passed before any movement was made. A man, younger than Percival but older than Cecilia, stepped forward, his dark brown hair cut short, revealing pale blue eyes, stepped forward. His steps were slow and cautious, as if approaching a wild beast, a single pale hand made its wary path towards the shuddering shoulders of the sobbing knight. He was only a breath away when a soft voice spoke.

"He is need of comfort sir. Please help me comfort him. There is only so much I can do, for I too am grieving for the loss of our mother." The voice cracked slightly as Cecilia spoke, her own grief coming to the surface, as a few crystal tears left creamy eyes.

"I will do all I can to help you." The man promised as he wiped the tears from Cecilia's cheeks, her face flushing slightly due to the tears and the close contact. "But I need to know who you are." If Cecilia could see then the man would have thought that she was looking right at him, but as it was he assumed that she just guessed his general direction so that she could talk while looking slightly at him.

"I am Cecilia. I am the younger sister of Percival, I come from Rhyl* where my mother is buried. I have no home, and I left my village with Theodoric to live with my brother. We have been travelling only a day thus far." She explained, her tears stopping as quickly as they came. Her arm unwrapped itself from Percival and her hand left his. "I do not know who you are sir, but I can tell you are a kind soul." She stood, slowly, touching Percival timidly on his shoulders, her dark hair falling over her own shoulders in an elegant wave. "Can I ask for your name?"

"Merlin. Merlin Emrys." A smile crept across Cecilia's face, her white teeth shining as she laughed slightly.

"The immortal coast." She sighed. "Always supporting the sea in its destiny. I love the sea; the water speaks such amazing things, such surprising creatures." She turned to the other men, shocking the knights. Merlin was more shocked about how Cecilia, a young woman who had never met him before, nor knew anything about his existence could sum up his life in no more than two sentences. "Do you like the sea?" She asked innocently.

"OUR MOTHER IS DEAD AND YOU ARE ASKING ABOUT THE SEA!" Percival suddenly shouted, his King and his fellow knights jumped slightly at the sudden noise, Merlin simply turned to face the tall man. "HOW CAN YOU DEFILE HER LIKE THAT?" Percival had streams of tears running from his red-rimmed eyes. Cecilia kneeled down once again, her hands finding Percival's face, soothing him as she spoke in hushed tones.

"Brother. I have had several days to become accustomed to the loss; I had over a year to understand that you were not always going to be there for me. The night I found out I cried long into the next morn. I am not defiling my memories of mother, nor am I ignoring her, but I simply have had time. I am beginning conversations about different matters to prevent myself from falling into hysteria. Please understand this, Percival, my brother." She kissed him softly on the forehead, her lips never lingering more than acceptable though. Her small hand brushed some imaginary hair off of Percival's face and gave him a small smile. Merlin looked back at the group and they all seemed to have the same train of thought as him; 'Let's leave them alone for a while.' The group of men left, they even took Theodoric with them so that he wouldn't be caught alone in the family situation.

A distance from the grieving siblings the men conversed. A blonde with piercing blue eyes looked at Theodoric with a scrutinizing glare. A red tunic that covered his chainmail bore the symbol of a dragon. Theodoric recognised it as the symbol for the Pendragon family, the royal family. He was brought out of his train of thought when the blonde man spoke.

"So, who are_ you_?" There was no sincerity in the question, it was obviously meant to be threatening, and Theodoric had to resist the urge to cringe as he looked the blonde in the eye.

"I'm Theodoric. I'm a blacksmith in Rhyl; I was the one that the village decided should bring Cecilia to Percival. It was meant a two week journey for me, but seeing as Cecilia and Percival are together I might go back early." He gave a weak laugh as the group of men studied Theodoric. "I actually proposed to Cecilia before, but she turned me down. I think this was the village's way of trying to get her to change her mind." Theodoric scratched the back of his neck as his nerves took over, he was a big guy, but there was only one of him.

"How come Percival left Cecilia behind in the first place?" A different man asked, he had dark skin but kind, brotherly eyes. Theodoric felt he could trust this man, these men, with his secrets.

"I'm not sure why Percival left Cecilia behind. All I know is that we lied to Cecilia." The guilt was overbearing for Theodoric, who had been brought up to be an honest man.

"What you mean 'you lied'?" Said a third man, his accent having a slight lift at the end and his overly well groomed hair, in Theodoric opinion, was brushed to the side as the man spoke. "How could you lie to that girl?" He continued to ask.

"When her mother died we told her it was her heart. But that wasn't what happened. Raylene, Percival and Cecilia's mother, died because of magic, but we couldn't tell Cecilia that."

"Why not?" The blonde continued. His eyes narrowing at the blacksmith, threatening him to continue his story.

"You may have noticed the way that Cecilia acts, she can talk to nature. Don't ask me how, I don't know, but we all know that Cecilia carries magic," There was a pause as Theodoric looked at the men, panic suddenly in his eyes at his confession, "but she couldn't hurt a fly!" he reasoned "It's just that we, the people in the village I mean, think that Cecilia knows she carries magic and didn't want her hating herself for being part of something she couldn't control. I mean, it's not like Cecilia can cast spells, or make potions or anything like that, she has a more passive power. I mean like…um…err…AH! When there is a storm the winds tell Cecilia about the storm and how strong it's going to be and then she tells the village so that we can prepare for it. If there is going to be a drought the earth makes Cecilia aware so that the farmers can ensure that the crops are cared for." Theodoric was making wild arm gestures in his attempt to defend Cecilia, completely aware that he just told a group of men from Camelot, where having magic was punishable by death, that the blind girl could speak with nature. He was, however Theodoric was oblivious to the fact the Merlin had been listening intently to what the blacksmith had to say after he first mentioned magic. His pale eyes glowing slightly in the early day light.

"Is there anything else she can do?" Merlin asked, earning a glare from the blonde that he stood near. "What? Can you honestly say that you don't want to know what Percival's sister is like Arthur?" With the mention of his name Theodoric suddenly bowed, his breath became unsteady and full blown panic flooded in.

"Please. Your majesty, don't hurt Cecilia, she hasn't done anything wrong, she isn't truly magical, it's more that she has a connection with nature, please don't punish her for something she had no control over. Please, I beg you." Theodoric burst into hysterics at the thought of something happening to Cecilia, all because he opened his mouth.

"Arthur, we don't need to hurt the girl do we. I mean, Percy has been through so much already, we don't need to add to it." Reasoned Merlin, Arthur looked at the dark haired man and sighed, he knew Merlin was right but he didn't want to admit it, because that would mean he would have to admit the other times when Merlin was right, and that would do nothing for his ego. With a deep sigh Arthur turned to face the blacksmith from Rhyl, his face was stern and aggressive, he looked as if he was about to attack Theodoric, but made no such movements.

"Fine" He sighed finally. "We won't hurt the blind druid girl. But if she has magic wouldn't that mean so does Percival?"

"Firstly, just because nature talks to be doesn't mean I'm druid. Secondly, I am eighteen years old, meaning I am old enough to marry and bear children, so therefore I am not a 'girl', but a woman. And thirdly, magic isn't just biological, I was given my gift because I cannot see, Percy here can see so therefore has no need to be able to talk to the Earth." Cecilia walked out from behind some bushes with a sore-eyed Percival following shortly behind her. "Finally, I'm not magical, I can't cast spell or anything like that, and it's not like I can read books on sorcery, so I can't understand why you would feel the slightest need to judge me like any other magical being." Her voice was soft on the breeze, a soft accent made it seem as if she was part of the breeze itself. Merlin and Arthur shivered slightly at the undertone of her voice, it was cold and harsh, like and icy waterfall. Pale eyes bore into the souls of the men, as if it was possible for Cecilia to see what lay beneath their coloured surfaces. Percival came up behind Cecilia and gently touched her covered shoulder, making her turn to face him.

"Sister, you are trying to convince them you are not evil, and that you are the sweet young woman I know you are." He said in a tired, hoarse voice. His hand shook slightly as he removed it from her shoulder and faced Arthur. "I apologize if Cecilia offended you, she doesn't mean to be rude, but she gets greatly offended when people begin to question her, it isn't personal." He softly shoved Cecilia towards the two men, but unfortunately she tripped. Everyone held their breath as what happened seemed to happen in slow motion.

Merlin rushed forward to catch the falling girl, but he misjudged the distance slightly, sending both of them falling in a different direction, in Merlin's attempt to prevent Cecilia from hurting herself he turned the both of them while they were falling, but even this was not enough as the couple fell down a small ditch that was near the group. There was the sound of twig and braches breaking as they rolled down the ditch and then when the two, finally, stopped Merlin looked up to see what damage had been done, but he was not prepared for the position they had landed in. Cecilia was on top of Merlin, but that wasn't the issue, the issue was the fact that she was straddling his hips and during the fall the ties on her dress had come loose revealing a lot of her chest to Merlin. He felt his face grow hot has she moved slightly, rubbing her hips against his, her hands brushing against his chest, it took all of Merlin's willpower to not react to the stimulation presented to him. Some rustling from above brought Merlin out of his, less than innocent, thoughts.

"You really are an idiot, aren't you Merlin." It was a statement, not a question, that the arrogant tone of none other than the King himself carried that helped Merlin normalise the awkward situation. "Totally useless you are. The worst manservant in the whole country, if not the world." He continued to prattle on as he, and the other knights made their way down the bank of the ditch. Percival raised an eyebrow at the situation but said nothing as Merlin sat still so that Cecilia could be lifted to her feet by a knight, who Theodoric now knew to be Gwaine. Cecilia smiled slightly at Merlin, causing him to blush further, and Arthur had to stifle a laugh, but that didn't prevent him from snorting at his manservants' reactions to the young woman. "Fancy her already Merlin?" Arthur whispered into the dark hair man's large ears.

"No!" Merlin suddenly replied, desperate to avoid any discussions that had anything to do with Cecilia now. He kept telling himself that Cecilia didn't smile at him, and that to think she was special because of her natural abilities, not her beauty, was all he needed to care about. He watched as Cecilia spoke softly to a tree, he wondered briefly if she was aware that no one was there, but when the tree suddenly moved he realised that Cecilia was actually intending to talk to the tree, increasing his curiosity of the young woman, _but only her magic. _Merlin told himself. _Don't let a pair of pretty eyes get in your way like with Freya. _His memory of her still held dear in his heart.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Cecilia felt a strong lurching in her stomach as a man, with a name she did not know, led her to a place, she could not see. Not that such an occurrence was unusual to Cecilia, but it made her uncomfortable none the less. In the group of men that she and Theodoric met she only knew two of them; Percival, her brother, and Merlin, a manservant to the King, who she had yet to meet on an official level. Since her tumble with Merlin, Cecilia had been talking to the trees, trying to pry any information about the men she was with from them. The trees had been less than helpful for all they told her was that Arthur was the King of Camelot, and that all beside Merlin were knights. A small smile danced across her lips as she heard the wind tell her off all the times Merlin and Arthur would travel together and the honest joy and friendship the two shared, it made Cecilia deeply happy to know that the King that Percival worked for, and would willingly die for, was someone who had a kind heart and would easily become friends with those he trusted, even if it was in some weird backhanded way like the relationship between Arthur and Merlin was. Cecilia sighed when the man handling her stopped and finally spoke to her.

"I didn't mean to hurt you." A soft voice hushed, Cecilia smiled slightly when she recognised it as Merlin's, it had a certain calmness and boyish charm to it that made Cecilia feel even more at peace with the world than usual. She tried to reach out to Merlin, to reassure him that she was, indeed, fine and unharmed. Cecilia frowned slightly when she couldn't feel Merlin, she had been sure that he was within her reach, but now she became panicked that what she heard was merely an echo and that Cecilia was further away from people than she had thought she was. Her breathing quickened in pace as Cecilia flailed her arms about in an attempt to find anything that she could use as a landmark, the winds felt her panic and sent breezes to direct Cecilia to a more secure destination, the Earth rumbled gently whenever Cecilia came near a root that protruded from the ground. "Cecilia, I'm so sorry I made you fall. I swear I didn't mean to, I'm not like that." The voice continued, Cecilia was so sure that it was Merlin originally, but as it echoed on it became clearer that the voice wasn't Merlin's, Cecilia felt a shiver run down her spine as the voice became taunting and sadistic. It's tone colder than ice and harsher than the northern winds.

Cecilia opened her eyes wider in a, futile, attempt to see what was there. The winds had stopped responding to her and the Earth was basically dead under her feet, suggesting that Cecilia had somehow managed to find a building and get a way inside, cutting her off from the natural world. Cecilia was all but hyperventilating at being separated from her only way of seeing. A pulsing had made its way to the forefront of Cecilia's brain, signalling that powerful magic was about, she had felt it when she had fallen with Merlin, but this…this was different. The magic in Merlin was soft, not weak, but kind and obviously had only been used for good reasons. The magic Cecilia felt now was darker; it had been misused, and be it in deceit or an actual act. Either way the magic Cecilia felt was something she wanted to avoid. Despite being trapped in a room with it. There was a creaking coming from behind Cecilia, like a door…closing and locking. Cecilia ran towards the sound, not caring if she stumbled along the way, she found the wall and door that she must have come from, but when Cecilia turned the handle of the door she realised that it was locked, from the inside. There was someone, or something, in the room with her.

"Please." She whimpered, tears beginning to sting her eyes. "Please don't hurt me." Her confidence, her courage, dying in less than a second. Hands shaking slightly, Cecilia felt her way forwards, trying to find another was out, or a place where she could hide, but at her pace of movement even she knew that hiding would be pointless. "I'm sorry. Whatever I did. I didn't mean to do it. I'm sorry." While apologising for something Cecilia may have had nothing to do with she was inwardly cursing herself. _I trusted the Earth. Nature was my friend, why would she betray me now? _

"Stupid woman." The voice from before sneered, unlike before where it seemed to echo and transform, it was now clear and directly behind Cecilia. It was childish, but not in the sweet way, more in the 'I'm an adult in a child's body' kind of way. There was more hatred and distrust in that voice than Cecilia thought possible. "I thought you were smarter than that." The voice continued, Cecilia calmed down slightly, knowing that there was probably no one else in the room beside the person talking.

"I apologise for being scared of not knowing where I am, and panicking when I cannot find anything to help me understand what is happening. This room, it does not even have sounds in it, I cannot feel the Earth in here." Cecilia snarled back. She never did take to being insulted. "Forgive me for asking, but who are you?" If Cecilia could see whoever she was talking to, she would have glared at them.

A dark chuckling came from the other person. It was like a child who had pulled the wings off a butterfly, while the creature was still alive. "Mordred. And you are Cecilia, sister of Percival." She would have gasped, but it became obvious to her that the other person knew who she was.

"How did you convince the winds to bring me here?" Cecilia snapped, she didn't like not knowing where she was, especially when she knew that there was people who would worry about her disappearance, at least she hoped they worried that she was gone.

* * *

Merlin was panicking. No, that is the wrong word. Merlin was in the middle of hysterics. He had taken Cecilia back to the horses so that he could collect the arrows and swords that the knights had left behind, he hadn't been gone long when he returned to the horses. At first he couldn't see Cecilia, but he hadn't thought much of it, she had probably just sat down nearby, was his initial thought, but when he got no responses from Cecilia when he tried to talk to her, he knew that something was wrong. He searched the area around where he had left Cecilia, but there was no sign of her, there weren't even any footprints so that he could guess where she had gone to. He started calling her name in a vain attempt that she would reply, maybe saying something like; 'she got lost' or 'she got stuck' or even 'I heard a butterfly so I followed it' but there was nothing. He started pacing around the horses when Arthur and the knights returned.

"Merlin. We were just talking about you." Arthur called, a stupid smirk plastered across his face. "Percival was saying about how quickly his sister took a shine to you, but I said that he shouldn't hope for you as a brother-in-law, that's a fate I wouldn't wish on anybody. Speaking of which; where is Cecilia?" His smile left when Arthur saw Merlin pale. A nervous smile wavered across the dark-haired man's face. Pale eyes showed pure, unadulterated fear. "Merlin." Arthur drawled his tone suddenly dark. "Where is Cecilia?" Arthur looked like he was ready to pounce on Merlin, but Percival looked like he was ready to bury Merlin in a shallow grave.

"Well. You see…I was just getting the swords…and I mean… I hadn't been gone long…she was right here when I left…" He babbled, fear settling in every pore of his being. Cecilia was a sweet girl, blind, and defenceless. She would be the perfect target of anyone looking for an easy prize. "I was only gone for a minute!" He suddenly exclaimed, shaking slightly at what his own mind had presented to him as what had happened to Cecilia. "She was right here when I left. I looked for her but she wasn't there. What was I meant to do?" His hands going straight to his hair Merlin continued to pace, he glanced at Percival, he was shaking too, but probably with anger instead of fear.

"Merlin, are you telling me that you LOST Cecilia?" Merlin nodded slowly, tendrils of fear crawling up his back and down his spine. "How STUPID are you Merlin? We left you alone with her for only a couple of MINUTES and you LOSE her!" Arthur ranted, Percival continued to shake, but now Merlin could see that there were tears in the corner of his eyes. He was just as afraid as Merlin, if not more so. He had lost his mother and now he had lost his sister but there was always hope that they would find Cecilia quickly.

"My lord." Percival finally managed to whisper. "I mean no disrespect, but can we look for Cecilia and then continue to belittle Merlin. I do not feel that we should be wasting time now." His usually bright blue eyes clouded over with anger, fear and rage. Pure rage. Arthur could sense that Percival was likely to go on a murderous rampage if they didn't start looking for his sister soon, he didn't blame Percival in the slightest for being angry, nor could he fault the taller man. When Morgana had first gone missing, despite not being his actual sister, he still felt the urge to kill whoever took her. Now the feeling is something completely different, but that was beside the point. Arthur gave a quick nod and the knights began to search the area for any signs of where Cecilia might have gone. They spread out a fair distance before they came to the conclusion that Cecilia had been taken, and probably by someone, or something, that used magic.

Percival roared with rage, his fist pounded a tree as he thought about what could be happening to his sister. For all he knew she could be dead and left in some ditch somewhere, her beautiful face marred by dirt and blood. His breath came out in shudders as he tried to stifle his sobs. In less than a day he had lost his mother and his sister. Merlin was shocked about how badly Percival took Cecilia's disappearance, he was normally so polite, so calm and nice that even saints seemed slightly dark compared to the gentle giant. The thought of what Percival would be like if Cecilia had been hurt in anyway sent shivers down the spines of all the knights, even Arthur, who is known to laugh in the face of death, feared what would become of his trusted knight.

* * *

"So…" Cecilia started. She had now been sat in a wooden chair at a table. Mordred, whoever he was, was apparently sitting near her. Cecilia had given up on trying figuring out if Mordred was an adult or a child, like she thought he was. Her hands were on her lap, playing with some stitching on her skirt that would need to be fixed later. Occasionally she would play with the end of her hair, Cecilia had often wondered what colour her hair was, she had been told that her hair was a dark brown, but not knowing what brown looked like didn't help her understand what her hair was like. The pregnant pause that had been created due to Mordred's lack of a response hung stiffly in the air. "Is there a particular reason you had the winds and earth lead me here, or is this just a game and I'll be back with my brother in a moment's time?" What came next was unexpected, instead of hearing Mordred talk to her; it was a voice inside her mind. _What makes you think this is a game? Did you know that you're like me? _"I am nothing like you. I have no evil intents, no strong magic and I don't kidnap blind people." _You and I are more alike than you think. We are like Emrys, but you are not the same. You are special. You can talk to the Earth, we can only interpret it. _"That still doesn't mean I'm like you. As I said, I can't cast spells, or bewitch people or place charms. I am just more in tune with the world." _It is more than that. You can control the natural world. Did you know that there is a prophecy about you? Would you like to hear it? _The child-like innocence of that last question made Cecilia shudder slightly, worried about who it was exactly that was sat next to her. "I'm not entirely sure I want to answer either of those questions. I don't think I even want to know why you seem to know so much about me, but I know that you will tell me anyway, so please, continue." He chuckled slightly out loud, causing Cecilia to jump at the sudden sound. _It has been said, by an ancient druid tribe, that a blind druid will be born to the family of a knight. She will be a perfect lady and a marvellous witch, without actually being either. Three times she will be spat out by the dragon, twice will she be eaten by the warlock and once will she lose her most precious gift. To please her mind she must hurt her heart, to please her heart she must destroy her body, to please her body she must lose her mind. Her life will be lost on the words of a song, in loving memory she will be forgotten, her dying breath given to another. All lost but all gained, the Goddess of Natures Song will rise. _"That's not me! I'm not a druid! I don't have magic!" She screamed, Cecilia could read between the lines of the prophecy, it wasn't hard for her. "Why can't you understand?" She stood up, banging her hands against the surface of the table with streams of tears leaving her milky eyes. Mordred just chuckled again.

"If I were to kill you, if I just left you here, then the prophecy wouldn't come true, and I could stop Emrys." He sighed, as if contemplating the possibility of killing Cecilia. "But if I did that, then it would only refract back onto me. You see..." There was a shuffling, suggesting that Mordred was moving, as the noise got louder it was clear to Cecilia that Mordred was getting closer to her. "If Nature's song is never song then I can't come into my full power, so I need you alive, but I don't want to rest of the prophecy to happen. What do you think I should do?" Cecilia was tempted to slap Mordred, but she knew that she was more than likely to miss him in her attempt and make him angry with her, so she refrained from physical violence.

"I think you should let me go. I think that nature shall take its course whether you kill me or not, that there is a back-up plan that you have no knowledge about. At least if you let me live you have an idea of what is likely to happen. I don't agree with this prophecy though, I am not a druid, I have never been a druid, nor will I ever be a druid." She spat quietly, her anger was clear but not overflowing, and she sat back in her chair and waited to see what Mordred would do. Cecilia waited for what seemed like hours, but was probably only mere seconds, for something to happen, in the end Cecilia heard to door being unlocked and opened. Not what she had expected, but was great all the same. A small hand grabbed Cecilia's, it was then that she had been made fully aware that she had been taken by a child, and dragged her towards a breeze, the second Cecilia was outside she bolted. Using the winds, Earth and trees once more she all but flew through the forest, hoping that she would find someone who she trusted, or even Arthur, who she didn't know or trust but felt compelled to follow.

It couldn't be long until she found someone, she hoped.


End file.
